Chapter 40

The call with the Duke ended. Astel blinked, laying on the bed.

‘Good night.’

…It seemed to be true that the imprint was unstable.

Seeing my heart beating like this

As I buried my face on the soft bed linen, I shouted, “Ahhh!”

It was then…

The light glistened from the video sphere given by my brother, who had put it on the side table.

Astel jumped up from the bed.

Her expression hardened resolutely.

At this point, there was only one reason for my brother’s video sphere to ring.

Immediately, I went to the side of the bedside table and turned on the video sphere and looked into it.

“Astel.”

My brother had an indifferent expression on his face.

Of course, I know that expression well.

When too much misfortune came, my brother always had that kind of expression on his face.

Now, my older brother met his son, who was on the verge of death, and was entrusted in the orphanage.

Even though I already knew it, my heart thumped and dropped, and a part of my heart ached.

Then I calmly asked my brother.

“…Brother, did you go to the capital?” (Astel)

“Yes.” (Cassian)

Waiting for the next word, but a short answer was all he said.

Even after he contacted me first, my brother stayed still, and I was the only one who kept asking after him.

We talked for a while, but none of us brought up the story of my nephew.

It was me who was impatient first.

“Brother, I have something to tell you.” (Astel)

“…What?”

“I’m really, really good.” (Astel)

“Yes, my Astel is good. Yes, it’s the best.” (Cassian)

My naive brother who likes everything I say.

“No, not that.” (Astel)

Perhaps my nephew had to have a competent healer next to him 365 days a year.

“Brother, I’m the most reliable person in the world, you know?” (Astel)

My brother muttered softly as if he were sighing.

“Yes, Astel. You’re… my everything.”

Astel bit her lips hard at Cassian’s words.

While determining and preparing for revenge, the only younger sibling in the world of ‘Cassian Gray’ was his beloved sister.

There were lovers whom he met briefly. However, it was a brief meeting under consultation, and he couldn’t rely on and love with all his heart.

The child who unexpectedly appeared to him becomes a being comparable to, perhaps more than, the existence of his cherished younger sister.

It hurts so much for the child to die, but…

Because it was such a rare disease, it was impossible to cure it even with Astel’s ability in the original work, but now it was possible for me.

Anyway, even if I die without being able to deal with the final villain, if I make the child healthy and secretly take it back, my brother would be able to live with the child through hardships.

So, I had to take charge of my nephew and raise him well.

“Today I treated a child named Sally. I was lucky enough to have my ‘specialty’, Mana Runaway Syndrome.” (Astel)

Of course, it was a lie.

But with the meaning of entrusting his son to me, I told my brother as if brainwashing him.

“If my brother needs me, you could always come to me.” (Astel)

Cassian just stared at her with an admirable look, but didn’t answer.

Instead, the sphere was quietly turned off.

In the aftermath of the long call, the sphere was hot. Even after this, my brother was in conflict.

But he was very indebted to the child.

‘I knew it well.’

The fact that it’s actually only a matter of time before my brother takes the child to me.

So now I have one thing left to do.

I’ll work hard analyzing the artifacts, catch a spy among the swordsmen, and when the Duke returns…

I’d carefully ask if I could raise a friend’s child in the castle, or if it was okay to invite him.

✿

Two days later, as I came out of the Duke’s library, I stretched out.

‘Why am I so dizzy these days?’

Lately I had no appetite, and it felt like slagging.

‘I took medicine, but it’s still like this, it’s weird.’

Wondering if this was a symptom of the imprint, so I read a few books about the imprint in the Duke’s Library.

However, the symptoms of the temporary imprint clearly didn’t have any side effects that I experienced.

Getting close with each other, holding hands, and kissing a little bit!

…Then it ended neatly. It was like this.

‘It’s strange… Was being tired just some kind of illness?’

Stretching out my stiff shoulders and yawning again.

How could I feel sleepy even after sleeping more than 10 hours?

Passing through the promenade near the library and entering the treatment center inside the Duke’s Castle, I greeted vigorously as if I were trying to shake off my drowsiness.

“Hello!”

These days, I was stamping my feet to work at the treatment center every day.

It was because it was time to spur the preparations for the swordsmanship competition.

The general manager, Ricardo, was doing his work at the treatment center with me to confirm the doping test.

Since the swordsmanship competition was the most important event in the Duchy, a large number of outside personnel were also employed.

The representative who was hired was the head of the treatment center…

“Die, you punk!”

“Oh, no, lord- what kind of abusive language to…”

Bang!

The head of the Treatment Center, Miles, who had come with an ambitious promise to show his treatment skills to the knights of the swordsmanship competition, continued to be hit on the head.

The youngest healer next to me muttered in a low voice.

“If you get hit in the head, it makes a tin can sound…”

“I know, right.”

‘So why are you bothering me?’

There was a reason why Miles got beaten.

Early in the morning, Miles, who went to the treatment center, rummaged through the 【 List of Medical Information of Knights in the Dukedom 】 that was in my seat.

Then he got caught by Ricardo and was hit on the head.

He seemed to have been hit on the head in front of everyone and hurt his pride, but he couldn’t help it because he was pushed back by the logic of power.

Looking down white contemplating their situation.

‘By the way, I didn’t know that there would be no knights with lightning-shape under their eyes.’

The identity of the swordsman was unknown, and the analysis of artifacts has also been stagnant.

It was only natural that the Artifact Appraiser still did not reveal his face.

‘Were the hair growth medicine weak?’

Fortunately, there has been one harvest recently.

It was thanks to a little boy who knocked on the door of the treatment center every morning these days.

“Welcome, Bell.”

The successor to the silver fox, Bell.

A six-year-old boy with silver hair and red eyes poked out his face.

“Hello, Lord. Hello, Astel!” (Bell)

“Are you here again today, you little bean!” (Ricardo)

“Yes!”

“Don’t bother Astel too much.” (Ricardo)

“Oh, I’m not bothering!” (Bell)

The innocent Bell with its little and sharp eyes drooping down slowly approached me.

The Silver Fox family was certainly a master of magic.

In this vast northern part of the empire, there would be no place that makes magic tools as well as the silver fox family.

In that sense, it was natural luck that Bell needed something from me.

“I brought what I promised! Now, hand over mine!” (Bell)

“What’s that?” Ricardo asked curiously.

“It’s nothing.” (Astel)

“It’s nothing, my lord!” (Bell)

Astel and Bell pretended it was nothing.

In fact, it was a one-time <magic contract> that Bell, the silver fox beast, offered.

‘A contract to be used with the Artifact Appraiser.’

Astel was going to write a contract so that he couldn’t divulge secrets to the outside world.

It would be difficult to avoid the eyes of the final villain with an ordinary magic contract.

The <Magic Contract> developed by the silver fox family had the compulsion that the contents of the contract could not be disclosed.

Neither of the contractors was able to disclose the contents of the contract, and if an outsider tried to forcibly uncover the contents of the contract, they would be bound by a spell.

Glancing at Bell and thanked him.

“Thank you.”

Astel smiled happily, putting the <Magic Contract> in her pocket.

“Don’t mention it!”

Where did the kid who asked for a potion to change his timid personality go? and Bell stretched his shoulders proudly.

“Now then, give me the items you prepared!”

Bell whispered into my ear.

It feels like smuggling drugs.

The other healer’s eyes narrowed.

Astel ruffled Bell’s silky silver hair, muttering secretly.